The New Child of Prophecy
by falling-star13
Summary: Second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be more exciting than expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to TNG.
1. All My Own

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.

**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.

**Chapter 1- All My Own**

_My_ room. I couldn't say that enough. My very own room. I didn't have to share it with anyone. It was _mine_. I could leave my stuff all over the floor and no one would complain. I didn't have to worry about finding my brother's underwear under my bed (can you say gross?). I didn't have to worry about him finding _my_… Well, I think you get the idea.

"Lily!" someone called up the stairs.

I rolled off my bed and went to the doorway of my room (did I mention it was _mine_?). "Yeah?" I yelled back.

"Allie's going to be here soon," Dad said.

I whooped and hopped on the banister to slide down. Our banister's enchanted so that it's easier to slide down it.

You see, I'm a witch. My name's Lily Potter. Well, Nymphadora Potter, if you want to get specific, but nobody calls me that. Unless they're yelling my full name, but that doesn't happen much (thank Merlin). Or they happen to be my annoying cousin Percy. I was about to start my second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, along with my twin brother James. My older brother Sirius was about to start his sixth year and Grace, my sister, was about to start her fourth.

My best friend, Allison Freck (again, that's only if you get specific; we call her Allie), was coming to visit for the last two weeks of the summer. James' best friend, Alex Wood, had been coming over most of the summer since our dads were working on a big project they wouldn't tell us about, but I hadn't seen Allie since the end of the school year.

I slid off the end of the banister and landed in front of Dad. He smiled slightly. "Could you go find James? I think he's out back." We have a miniature Quidditch pitch in our backyard. There are some spells on it so that our muggles neighbors can't see or hear anything when we play, and it keeps the bludgers and the snitch in our yard.

As soon as I stepped outside, a quaffle came flying towards me. I caught it easily and launched it back out towards my brother, glaring at him. "Why do you keep doing that!"

"I want you to be ready," Sirius said, grinning. "I'm captain this year, so I decide whether or not you're on the team."

"You've only told us everyday since you got your letter," James said.

Sirius just grinned even more. "I don't want you to forget. Alright, go on, go say hello to Lils' friend before she decides to come up here and get you herself."

"I was kind of hoping I wouldn't need to," I said.

James touched down next to me. "Thought I'd save you the trip."

"Gee, thanks," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

We went through the house and got back to the front just as Dad was closing the door. "They should be out back," he was saying.

"Right here," I said.

Allie turned around and grinned. "Lily!" She gave me a hug. "It's been forever!"

"Six weeks," I agreed. "Which really isn't fair since Alex has been over here almost every day."

"Why?" she asked.

"Because his dad and our dad are working on some top secret… _thing_," I said.

"Oh, hi, James," Allie said, looking over my shoulder at James.

"Hey," he said, grinning. "Dad, is Alex coming over today?"

"His dad is coming over in about an hour," Dad said. "Why don't you give Allie a tour?"

"Okay," I said. "Come on, Allie, we need to show you the house."

She laughed. "Like your room."

"Like _my_ room," I said, grinning. Even if we hadn't seen each other all summer, we'd still written letters to each about once a week, depending mainly on what I was doing since we had to use my owl. My room was one of our main things to talk about, mostly because before that summer, I'd had to share a room with James.

After a quick tour of the house, we decided to go outside. Just as we were passing the stairs to the kitchen, Ben Weasley, my cousin, came running up the stairs. "Where's-" he started.

"Out back," James and I said at the same time.

"Thanks," Ben said, running out the back door.

"Does that… happen a lot?" Allie asked, looking slightly bewildered.

"Yeah," James said. "He floos here almost everyday so that he and Sirius can 'practice'."

"Of course, Weasleys are always popping in out of the fireplace," I added.

"Oh," Allie said simply.

JamesI grinned. "Come on. If you want to fly you can use Sirius' old broom."

"Are you still afraid of heights?" I asked. She nodded. "We'll tell Sirius to put the bludgers away. You just have to watch out for the quaffle."

"The what?" Allie asked as we opened the back door and went out. She's muggle-born and really didn't get Quidditch, no matter how many times we tried to explain it to her.

A red ball about the size of a football (AN- soccer) came flying towards me as soon as we were outside. I caught it and threw it towards Ben. "Watch out for that."

"They're always aimed for you, Lils," Ben said, grinning.

"Well, that's why I told her to watch out," I said, getting my broom. "We all know how horrible your aim is."

Ben laughed. "And we all know how much better our aim is than James'," Sirius added.

"Don't need to be able to aim," James said, kicking off from the ground. "I just have to catch things."

"Good thing for you then," I said as I handed Allie a broom and kicked off. I turned around to face her.

"Did I ever tell you how much I hate heights?" she asked, swinging one leg over the broom like we'd been taught the year before.

"Once or twice," I said, grinning.

"Okay, good." She kicked off, hovering only about four feet off the ground.

I looked up in time to catch the quaffle- again. "You're almost as bad as the stupid bludgers, Sirius!"

"That wasn't me," Sirius said. He nodded to a person on the ground. I glanced at the ground and groaned before throwing the quaffle at them as hard as I could.

"Hey! What did I do?" Alex yelled, having to duck to avoid being hit. "Hello to you too."

"Hey, Alex," James called. "Did you bring your broom?"

"What do you think that is in his hand, James?" I couldn't help but ask, rolling my eyes. James just turned and stuck his tongue out at me.

"Your mum said I should just leave it out here and tell all of you lunch is ready," Alex said.

We all touched back down and left our brooms outside, leaning them against the side of the house. "Any more luck with finding out what they're working on?" James asked Alex as we went inside. They were both working on finding out what our dads were working on. Alex thought it had something to do with the Aurors since that was where our dad worked; James thought it had something to do with Quidditch since Alex's dad worked in the Magical Games and Sports department.

"Oh, yeah," Alex said, grinning. "Don't know what your dad has to do with anything, but they're starting an Hogwarts alumni Quidditch league. I picked Dad up on the extendable last night."

"Dad's been wanting to start an alumni league for years," Sirius said. "I guess he finally found someone in the right department to help him."

"It hasn't been approved by the department officially, though," Alex said.

Sirius shrugged before turning to Ben. "How long are you staying today?" he asked.

"Until Mum yells at me through your fireplace," Ben said, smirking. "'Benjamin Weasley! You were supposed to be home two hours ago! What are you doing over there!' So probably around seven."

"Awesome," Sirius said, an almost identical look on his face.

"Uh-oh," I muttered. Identical looks on my brother and my cousin's face were never a good sign. Something James and Alex knew just as well as I did.

"Oh, don't worry, Lils," Sirius said. "We'll be nice."

"Yeah, right," I said, rolling my eyes as we all went down the stairs into the kitchen.

"Ben, what is your mum doing today?" Mum asked him as we entered the kitchen.

"Working on start of the term stuff," Ben said with a shrug. "She's still having trouble with Malfoy. He won't drop that prank from last year."

All of us looked at each other, trying to keep our faces straight. Everyone in the room (except for Mum, maybe, and Grace) knew that it had been James, Alex, and I with a little help from Allie. Sirius only knew because he caught us in the hall on our way back to the common room and Ben had either figured it out or Sirius or his sister Amanda told him.

"That's 'cause whoever did it hurt his son," Allie blurted before remembering she was talking to a professor and blushed. Mum just ignored it.

"Is she getting any hints on who it was?" Grace asked from where she was already sitting at the table.

"Nope," Ben said as we all sat down. "That's what's bothering him. If you don't know who did it, you can't punish him."

"Or her," I added.

"Or them," Sirius said, throwing me a knowing look. I just smiled innocently.

Um… yeah. A new year, a new beginning. New ways to torture my characters. Mwhahaha- **choke** **coughcough** Okay, anyway… Don't get excited about the whole Alumni Quidditch thing, please. It lasts until like… the ninth chapter. Seriously. And then it just goes away because I had more important plot bunnies to deal with. It's really not at all important. I wish I could take it out, but that's a big chuck out of a couple of chapters that I really don't want to mess with. Work with me here.


	2. Birthday Presents

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.  
**Aludra**- Well, you're just too picky about that stuff. An AN inside the story is just a little helpful reminder. You have to admit, I don't do it very often. Besides, the s'/s's thing is something I always do. That's the same way I've always done it.  
**Luna Lovegood8**- Yup. : ) Fun, fun.

**Chapter 2- Birthday Presents**

"What do you want for your birthday?" Allie asked.

I laughed. "A little late to be asking, isn't it?"

"Nope," Allie said. "Your birthday's not until tomorrow. I can get it today when we go to Diagon Alley."

"I _want_ a broom," I said. "But that'll be my Christmas present. If I make the team."

"I bet you will," Allie said confidently. "I'm not sure how much that means since I don't get the game, but Sirius thinks so too. Have you already gotten your supplies?"

"That's why we're going," I replied. "Have you?"

"No, my sister couldn't find the time." She sat down on the cot she was sleeping on while she was visiting. "Had an interesting dreams lately?"

"Nothing worth talking about," I said with a shrug. I'd been having dreams the year before about things that happened in the past. Things that had happened to my dad instead of happening to me. (Occasionally other family members, but it was usually Dad.) "It'd be nice if I had a dream of when Dad got on the Quidditch team. Or Mum or Sirius. Then maybe I'd know that I was going to make it."

"You will," Allie said. "You worry too much. They won't even have try-outs for at least a week after school starts, will they?"

"Probably n-"

"Lily, Allie! Are you two ready to go?"

"Coming," I yelled back. "Let's get this over with," I said to Allie.

"Do you not like floo powder?" Allie asked.

"I like it more than James," I said with a grin.

&-&-&-&-&

"That's what I want for my birthday," James said, pointing to a broom. Allie and I walked over to where he was standing in front of Quality Quidditch Supplies. "Golden Arrow. It's a remake of the Silver Arrows with better speeds and-"

"I know, James," I interrupted. "You've only got about five pictures of them on your bedroom wall."

"What's a Silver Arrow?" Allie asked.

"A _really_ old broom," I said. "First made over a hundred years ago. One of the first brooms to-"

"Reach a height of over a hundred feet and speeds greater than seventy miles per hour with a tailwind," James finished, turning around to face us. "They're better than Stars. Well, the remake anyway."

"Not better than Firebolts, though," I said.

"No one except for international teams can _afford_ Firebolts," James said. "We'll probably get Nimbuses. Not that I'm complaining."

"Can we talk about something I actually understand please?" Allie asked.

We laughed. "Let's go in here," James said. "Please? Five minutes, I swear."

"When was the last time you only took five minutes in Quality Quidditch Supplies?" I asked.

"I could ask you the same question," James said. He grinned. "Be right back." He disappeared into the shop.

"I hate it when he does that," I muttered, leaning determinedly against the outside wall of the shop. I figured if I didn't look into the shop, I'd be less likely to go in there and leave Allie outside.

"Oh, come on," Allie said, grabbing my arm and pulling me inside. "I have find you _something_. Why not start here?" I didn't put up much of a fight as she pulled my inside the shop. Okay, I didn't put up a fight at all. She let go of my arm when we got inside. "So what kind of stuff do you Quidditch people like?" she asked.

"Almost anything you find in here," I replied. "Unless it's just for a certain position, like just for beaters or keepers. Anything for chasers is fine though."

"And for James it's anything for a… seeter?"

"Close enough. Just don't ask anyone that works here if they have anything for a seeter. You'll get laughed out of the store."

"Why?"

"You'll look like an idiot."

"Lily!" someone called. I turned around, grinning, to see my cousin John pulling a very reluctant Amanda. Amanda brightened when she saw us.

"Never thought I'd see Allie Freck in Quality Quidditch Supplies," Amanda teased when they got closer.

"Birthday shopping," Allie said simply.

"Lily, Lily!" John exclaimed happily, pulling my arm to get my attention. "Did you see the new broom? Are you going to get one of those?"

"Maybe," I said, laughing. I looked up at Amanda. "Sugar high?"

"You could say that," Amanda said. "Do three chocolate frogs and a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans count as a sugar high?"

"It would for my brother," Allie said. "My little sister too."

"Can I look for James?" John asked Amanda. She nodded and John disappeared behind one of the shelves.

"He is in here, isn't he?" Amanda asked. I nodded. "Good. I didn't want to be sending him into the hands of a death eater or something. So what do you want for your birthday?"

"I dunno," I said, shrugging.

"How about a book of pranks?" Amanda teased.

"That's probably what Sirius'll get us," I said.

"Are my five minutes up yet?" James asked, coming up beside us with John. "Oh, hey, Amanda."

"Your five minutes are, but Allie's not done yet," I said.

"I can't do that while you two are in here," she said.

"How about you two take the little monster for a while and let us get you birthday presents?" Amanda suggested.

"Oh, let's go get some ice-cream!" John exclaimed, jumping up and down.

"Meet you at Fortescue's in fifteen minutes," James said. "Come on, Lils."

I shrugged. "See you in a bit."

&-&-&-&-&

"Wake up, wake up, wake up!" someone yelled in my ear the next morning.

"Oh, my head," I moaned, putting a pillow over my head. "If it's before 5:30, go away."

"It's not," James announced happily. "It's 6:30, plenty of time. Come on, it's our birthday. _Everyone_ wakes up early on their _birthday_."

"But I have a friend over," I groaned.

"All right, but you better get up soon," James threatened, running out the door and down the hall.

"Jeez, Lils, he's worse than you," Allie said after he had disappeared. She yawned. "At least you wait until at least seven."

"It runs in the family," I said, getting out of bed and shutting the door.

"Obviously," Allie said as she crawled out of bed. "I didn't get up early on my birthday."

"_I_ woke you up on your birthday," I said, turning from my chest of drawers to face her.

"Hmm…" Allie said, thinking. "I think you did."

"If it was a school day, I know I did."

"My birthday was a Thursday this year, so yes, you did wake me up on my birthday."

"Told you."

We walked into the kitchen about half an hour later to find James already sitting at the kitchen table with a small pile of presents in front of him. Dad was sitting across the table from him and Mum was running around the kitchen, getting breakfast ready.

"Can I now, Dad?" James asked. "She's here. Can I, please?"

Dad laughed. "Don't you want to wait until Grace and Sirius get down here?"

"No," James said. "Lils, tell Dad you want to open your presents too!"

"What if I want to wait for Sirius and Grace to get down here?" I teased, knowing how much it was torturing him.

"You are an evil twin sister, Lils," James said, glaring at me. "Very evil."

I giggled. "Alright, alright. Dad, can we open our presents now?"

"If you want to."

I slid into the seat next to James and Allie sat on my other side. James passed me a lumpy package. "Grandma got us sweaters again. Mum, why does she give us sweaters in the middle of August? Then she gives us another one for Christmas and-"

"It might not be a sweater," Mum said, turning from what she was doing to watch us. "In fact, I'm almost positive it isn't a sweater. Open it and see."

I ripped the paper off and looked at the mittens in my hand. "It's not a sweater," I said cheekily.

James groaned. "You can't wear mittens and a scarf in August!"

Mum and Dad laughed. "I think your grandfather's present makes up for it," Mum said.

James pulled a box off the pile. He took off the lid and he grinned. "Yes!"

I leaned over and took the box from him. "It's a miniature broomstick," Allie said. "What's so great about that?"

"Watch," I said, taking the tiny broom out of the box and setting it on the table. I looked at Dad expectantly. He pulled out his wand and tapped it (I couldn't do it since we aren't allowed to do magic outside of school.). The tiny broom rose up a few inches off the table.

"See, if you get a complete set, you can play Quidditch with them," James explained happily. "We have enough brooms, all we need now are the balls."

"And this is how wizards entertain themselves," Allie muttered under her breath. I just grinned.

&&&&&&&  
Attention everyone! If you want, we can play a little game called 'Guess the Birthday'? You up for it? All you have to do is guess Lily's (and James') birthday. Just to make it easier, I'll narrow it down a little. It's between August 15 and September 1. Extra points if you can figure out the year.

Work with me here. I'm starting high school, I'm extremely tired, and I'm trying to write two fics and edit another one while maintaining a life. Let me know if there are grammatical errors so that I can fix them for future reference, but do it nicely (not that you don't normally, just you know). I _know_ there are mistakes. Just tell me and I'll fix them later.

Most importantly, leave a review. One word, basic, simple, short reviews are great. Longer reviews are absolutely awesome. As long as there is a review.


	3. Daydreaming

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.  
**Dark Wolf of Teros**- Well, James is a bit of a little kid. In the cute, adorable way. Well, you're obviously closest. You're the only one that guessed. lol Actual birthday at bottom.  
**Wolf's scream**- I kinda think Lily's the type of person that, on the playground as a little kid, if you made fun of her name, she would not hesitate to beat you up. Yay! Lindsey avoided grammatical errors for once! lol

**Chapter 3- Daydreaming**

The next few days flew by and before I knew it, it was September first, the day we always went back to school (and I mean always. Since the school opened.). Everyone was running around the house, picking up last minutes robes and ties and throwing them into their trunk.

"Why can't the train leave at one or two instead of eleven?" James complained as we all piled into the car (which had magically expanded so that we could all fit in).

"Because then we wouldn't get there until the middle of the night," I said.

"And all us girls would have to listen to all the boys groaning about how hungry they are," Grace teased from the front seat. "Which we have to do anyways, but it would be even worse."

"Hey, it's not our fault we need food," Sirius said. "We're growing boys. Right, James?"

"Right," James agreed.

We pulled into the station about half an hour later. By the time we all had our stuff loaded onto a trolley and reached the barrier between platforms nine and ten, it was 10:45.

"Okay," Dad said (Mum had already gone to school since none of us were starting that year). "Grace, you go first."

"Bye, Dad," she said, giving him a quick hug. "We'll be home for Christmas." She ran at the barrier between the two platforms and disappeared.

"James and Allie, why don't you two go on ahead? Lily will be there in a minute."

The three of us exchanged looks, but James just shrugged it off. "See you at Christmas," and he disappeared.

"Thanks for letting me stay, Mr. Potter," Allie said.

"It was no problem, Allie," Dad said kindly, smiling at her. Allie turned and ran at the barrier, leaving me with Dad and Sirius.

"Dad, I've got a meeting-" Sirius started.

"This won't take long," Dad said, pulling a small package out of his pocket. "Now, I want you two to be especially careful this year. With the death eaters out and on the loose, they'll be looking. Sirius, watch all of your siblings." Sirius nodded. "And Lily…"

I stared at him, waiting for it. 'Be careful, be safe, don't do anything stupid, don't tell anyone about the prophecy, don't tell anyone about your dreams, tell your mum or your aunt if you need anything…'

Instead he just handed me the package. I looked at it before looking back up at him. "What's this for?"

"That's for all your dreams this year," Dad explained. "Since you seem to have them before something happens, it could a different type of Seeing. Just make sure you write down all the details you can remember." I rolled my eyes, but pocketed it anyway. "And I want you to keep the other part with you at all times," Dad added.

Before I could ask what he was talking about, Sirius started pushing me towards the barrier. "See you later, Dad!" Sirius pushed me all the way through the barrier before letting go. "Do you need some help finding a seat or-"

"I've got it, Si," I said. "Go find Ashley."

He grinned. "Alright, just making sure," he said before running off (or as well as you can while pushing a trolley) towards the prefects' compartment.

I sighed and took a quick look around the platform before pushing my trolley towards the end of the train, looking for the other two. I found them near the end of the train and quickly loaded my stuff as the whistle blew.

"What took you?" Allie asked, glancing up from the chessboard in front of her.

"Dad," I said simply, throwing myself onto the seat across from Alex, who was watching Allie and James play wizards' chess. I glanced over at the chessboard. "Save your knight, James."

"I didn't see that," Alex commented.

"I told you I didn't want your help," James said, moving his knight out of harm. "Not that she's much better." I rolled my eyes, grinning anyway. He had a point. "What did Dad want?"

"He wanted to give me something," I said.

"Our birthday was last week," James said.

"Not _that_ kind of something," I said. "Something to put my dreams in, he said." I suddenly remembered the other part. "And to keep the other part with me at all times."

"What's that supposed to mean?" James asked, looking up at me.

"I dunno, I haven't opened it yet." I pulled the package out of my pocket and looked at it before shrugging and putting it back in my pocket. "I'll open it when we get to school."

After Allie beat James (badly) at wizards' chess, we played a few games of Exploding Snap. Allie decided just to watch after about the fifth game. She pulled something I recognized as a muggle notebook and a pencil out. Alex stared at it.

"What's that?"

"This?" Allie asked, holding them up. "A notebook and a pencil. Haven't you ever seen a pencil before?"

Alex shook his head. "I told you, my mum taught us everything. What are they for?"

"Muggle version of parchment and a quill," I said, carefully watching the cards.

"Oh," Alex said. He laid down a card and they all exploded. I giggled as he rubbed his slightly singed eyebrows. "Oh, shut up," he said.

When the train finally pulled into the station, the clouds were dark and it looked like it might rain at any minute. We all ran to the cover of some horseless carriages just as the sky opened up and it started to pour.

"We're not measly little first years anymore," Alex said happily as the carriage jerked and started up the drive to school.

"Do you know anyone that's getting sorted?" Allie asked.

"Nope," I said. "Our cousin's getting sorted in few years, though."

"The little hyper kid at Quality Quidditch Supplies?" Allie asked.

James and I laughed. "Yeah, that little hyper kid," I said. "That's Amanda's little brother."

"I figured," Allie said. "When does he start?"

"Three years, I think," James said.

"That's when my little sister'll start," Allie said. "And my brother the year after that. Assuming, of course, that they _are_ magical."

"You guys all have big families," Alex said. "Both my parents are only children, and all I've got an older brother." He made a face. "He's captain of the Quidditch team _and_ a prefect. I'm just glad he's not Head Boy."

"Sounds like Sirius," James said. "There's no way Sirius could be Head Boy. He gets in too much trouble."

The carriage stopped and we all jumped out and ran for the Entrance Hall. Even though we ran, we all got soaked anyways. I slid to a stop to avoid running into anyone. Unfortunately, some people can't stop as fast as I can.

"Hey!" I yelled as James slid into Alex, who slid into me, knocking both of us to the floor. "Ouch."

"Sorry," Alex muttered, standing up. I pulled myself up and glared at James. James grinned and shrugged innocently.

"Watch out, coming through!" Kevin called as he, Ben, and Sirius all pushed their way past us.

"Why do I have the feeling we need to stay out of their way?" I said, not really asking anybody.

"Because you know our brother, our cousin, and their best friend too well," James said.

We pushed our way to the Great Hall and sat at the Gryffindor table. Cody Tanner, one of the boys in our year, was already sitting. "Hey, guys," he said brightly. "Have a nice summer?"

I opened my mouth to answer as shrieks came from the Entrance Hall. "Quick, Sirius, Kevin, or Ben?" James asked, turning to me.

"Um… Kevin," I said.

James shook his head as a yell carried from the Entrance Hall. "What did you three think you were doing! You could have hurt someone!"

"All three of them," Alex said, sounding impressed. "Must've been big."

"It's _always_ big with them," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Must run in the family," Allie muttered.

James put his hand over his heart dramatically. "I'm hurt. You say that like it's a bad thing." He put his hand down. "And it's always big because they figure, if you going to do it, you might as well do it right."

At that moment, everyone near the doors to the Great Hall got quiet. We looked up to see a line of first years walking in behind Aunt Hermione. I wondered if we looked that nervous before we were sorted (although I'm pretty sure we weren't that wet). Everyone's attention turned to the hat at the front of the Hall. Just as the brim opened, everything seemed to go out of focus.

I blinked and different pictures started zooming before my eyes. It was kind of like the commercials for movies we used to watch at primary school sometimes, showing clips of different parts of a movie or something.

One part showed Aunt Hermione standing at the front of the hall like she was now, holding a roll of parchment in her hands. Everything around her seemed hazy, though, like whoever was showing it to you wanted to make sure you focused on her. Another part was focused on a younger Professor McGongall doing the same thing and the third part was focused on the hat.

The three parts seemed to blur together. I was pretty sure I heard Aunt Hermione saw "Potter," like she was calling one of us to be sorted. And I think the Professor McGongall said "Megan," like it was someone's first name and I just missed the last name. Then the pictures slowed and focused on the hat. I couldn't see the person who was being sorted, but I saw the brim open and yell "RAVENCLAW!"

Suddenly, I was back in the Great Hall (not that I'd ever really left it, but you know). Everyone was clapping. "When I call your names, please come forward and place the hat on your head to be sorted," Aunt Hermione told the first years. "Appleby, Katlyn." But I wasn't paying any attention. _What just happened?_

James elbowed me every time someone got sorted into Gryffindor so that I would start clapping. After everyone was sorted and food had appeared on the tables, he turned to me. "Are you okay?"

I seriously considered saying yes, but decided he would know I was lying anyways and it was just easier to go ahead and tell him. "No, I'll explain later."

He nodded. I could tell how worried he was even without being an E.L. (Extended Legilimens).

"I'll talk to you later," Cody said to us, having seen his two best friends, Matt Finnigan and Rory O'Conner. He got up and moved down the table to where they were.

James immediately turned to me. "Well?"

"Later, alright?" I snapped. Allie and Alex were both watching us, but I really didn't care. I at least wanted _me_ to know what was going on before I told the other three. "Alex," I said warningly.

"Sorry," he muttered, not really looking sorry. He's an E.L. too, and a lot more advance than I was since he had known about it longer. Instead of just being able to read emotions like I could, he could read thoughts too. Well, with certain people anyway. Me being one of them, naturally.

Everyone else was piling food onto their plate, but I wasn't hungry. Did that mean I had a relative I didn't know about that was going to be sorted into Ravenclaw? Because I'd always been told all the Potters were sorted into Gryffindor. Actually, all my family I knew was in Gryffindor, except for my cousins Percy and Danielle. Well, and Claire and Laura, but they didn't go to Hogwarts.

Just trying to figure it out made my head hurt.

Professor McGongall stood up. "A few start of the term announcements before you go to bed. I would like _everyone_ to remember that the Forbidden Forest is off-limits-"

"As in… forbidden?" I asked quietly.

"No!" Alex exclaimed quietly in mock surprise. "You mean the _Forbidden_ Forest is actually forbidden?"

"- Quidditch try-outs will be a week from Saturday. Please speak to your captains for an exact time. This year there will be an Alumni Quidditch League for people who have already graduated from Hogwarts."

Alex and James gave each other a high five.

"They will occasionally be using our Pitch and will eat in here before every game so that you can have a chance to speak with them. All matches will take place in Hogmeade Stadium. If you have a signed permission form to go to Hogsmeade, you are also allowed to attend the matches. Dismissed!"

Everyone stood up and we made our way past the confused looking first years and the shouting prefects to the Entrance Hall. Instead of taking the 'long way,' as we called it, we took a couple of shortcuts that most people didn't know about. The path they showed the first years may be the most direct, but it wasn't the fastest.

"So… What happened in there?" James asked cautiously.

"I have no idea," I said. "Made my head hurt, though."

"I didn't know the sorting hat made up a new song every year," Allie said.

"It gives it something to do," Alex said. "Has to be pretty boring life-"

"Don't finish that," I threatened. All three of them looked at me in confusion. "You were going to say has to be a pretty boring life being a hat, weren't you?"

"Yeah," Alex said slowly.

"Okay, my life just officially got too weird," I announced. "I can predict the future by having dreams about the past. Fantastic."

"You can predict the future by… What?"

"Never mind," I muttered. We stopped in front of the portrait of the fat lady.

"Um… Anyone know the password?" Allie asked.

"Quaffle," Alex and I said at the same time. The portrait hole swung open.

"I have strange friends," Allie said, shaking her head and climbing through the hole. We laughed and followed her. Allie and I went up the stairs to our dorms and James and Alex went up another set of stairs to their dorm.

Amanda and Jessica Brooke, Amanda's best friend, were already there. "Hey," Jess said brightly. "Have a good summer?"

"It was alright," Allie said with a shrug. "How about you?"

"Pretty good, but I missed magic," Jess said. "All of you live with at least one person that can do magic. I'm the only person that can do magic at my house, and _I_ can't even do it legally."

"Why are there only four trunks?" I asked, looking at the trunks at the ends of the beds.

"Brianna asked to be moved," Amanda said, scowling. "She's in the other dorm." Brianna Caster was one of the Gryffindors girls in our year. There were a total of eight girls, so there was no way we could all fit in the same dorm. During the year before, Brianna had started to hang out with people in other houses more than she hung out with us. Which was fine with me (we weren't close).

"You're kidding," I said, surprised. "Why?"

"Dunno," Jess said. She giggled. "We decided she's scared of us."

"Really, what did we ever do to her?" Allie asked. "I mean, it's not like we ever hexed her." She turned to me, frowning. "You didn't, did you?"

"Why do you think _I_ was the one that scared her away?" I asked.

"Because, out of the four of us, you'd be the most likely to scare someone away," Jess said, giggling again.

"Thanks, Jess," I said, grinning. "No, I didn't hex her. If she wants to hang around Slytherins, that's her decision. But don't expect me to be friends with her."

"We'd never dream of it, Lils," Amanda said, laughing.

&&&&&&&&&

Aw, you guys are party poopers. You're too lazy to even post a reply saying 'Me thinks their birthday iz August …' (Yes, the awful English was on purpose.) It's not that hard, guys. But anyway… Her birthday is August 20, 2004. So Lily is one year old today. Yay! lol Anyway. **hands cookies to Dark Wolf** There you go. Enjoy.

Come on, guys. **REVIEW**! Please. I'm asking nicely. I _know_ you're out there. I'm on at least four different people's favorite list for this story alone. If you're not going to read this, take me off. If you are reading this, why aren't you reviewing? Where ARE you? Ahem. Right. Anyway. Please review. It really doesn't take much time. I'll even answer your reply personally if you leave a review. **pleading look**


	4. Mandrakes and Headaches

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.  
**Dark Wolf of Teros**- Well… Yeah, can't tell you. Can't even tell you if it's got anything to do with either one of them. **innocent grin  
Freja**- Ah, I know. It's one of those nasty writing habits I can't help. I always hate my endings. Sorry, another one line ending on the way.  
**godric76**- Half of what you're looking for is in this chapter. Half of it is not. For future reference, the titles keep getting better (I think). Third year is called _Fated Darkness_.  
**menace**- Well, I'm glad you like it! I can tell people like my writing if they're brave enough to wade through the first year. lol  
**Wolf's scream**- Just once or twice. ; ) That's the scene I was thinking of when I said that! That's one of my all time favorite movies.  
**Aludra**- Long time, no see, Chica. Alright, alright. No more author notes. I'll try to remember. No need to yell. Sheesh. And I keep thinking I fixed that. Gah.

**Chapter 4- Mandrakes and Headaches**

"What do we have today?" Allie asked the next morning.

"Herbology first thing with the Hufflepuffs," I said, reading off the timetable Aunt Hermione had given us. "Then we've got History of Magic with Ravenclaw and Double Charms after lunch."

Alex groaned. "We've got Potions with the Slytherins _again_."

"We will all through Hogwarts," I said. "Or, at least, that's what everyone says. I think."

"So you better get used to it, mate," James said, glaring at his timetable almost like he though glaring at it would make it change so we wouldn't have _any_ classes with the Slytherins.

"Used to, okay," Alex said. "Actually like it, never in a million years."

"We don't want you to," Allie said, laughing.

There was a sudden _whoosh_ as hundreds of owls flew into the Great Hall. Star landed on my shoulder like she did most mornings. "Hey, girl," I said, stroking her. A snowy white owl landed in front of my plate and looked up at me indignantly, almost like she was asking why I had another owl on my shoulder. "Hello, Hedwig," I said, laughing.

She held out her leg for me to untie the letter. As soon as I took it off, she flew straight over to Mum.

"I didn't know owls were that… possessive," Allie said, giving the white owl an odd look.

"She's old," I said, opening the envelope. "And moody."

"And she doesn't like me," James said, pretending to wipe a tear away.

"Maybe if you hadn't practically pulled all her feathers out, she _might_ actually like you," I said. I pulled the letter out and unfolded it.

_Open the package and make sure to keep the smaller part with you._

_Dad_

"How did he…?" I asked, staring at the letter in shock.

"How did who what?" Allie asked.

"My dad," I said, still staring at the letter. "How did he know that?"

"At least she answered the first part," James said, shrugging.

"What kind of connections do people have around here?" I asked. I looked up. "I mean, how did he know I hadn't opened the stupid thing?"

"That package that you were going to open when we got to school?" James asked. I nodded. "Maybe he got Railey to come up and see if you opened it." Railey was a house-elf that had worked for our family at one point but now worked in the kitchens at Hogwarts.

"But why?" I wondered aloud. "It's just a package… right?" Before anyone could answer, I stood up and grabbed my bag. "I'll meet you in Herbology."

"You'll be late on the first day!" James yelled as I ran out of the Great Hall.

"Don't care!" I called back.

I ran up the stairs three at a time, taking every short cut I knew. I shouted the password from halfway down the corridor and jumped through the portrait hole, getting some strange looks from a few other students who had the morning off. I just ignored them and dropped my bag right beside the portrait hole so I wouldn't have to run with it up the stairs. I ran into our dorm, opened my trunk, and pulled out a package.

I ripped the paper off, expecting _something_ big. But I definitely wasn't expecting a pretty ordinary looking Muggle notebook, ordinary Muggle pen, and a galleon. And a folded up piece of parchment. _So_ exciting.

I unfolded the parchment and realized it was a letter.

_Lils,_

_The notebooks is for you to write down all your dreams in. Every detail possible. Someone has a theory… Never mind, I'll explain it to you the next time I see you. It's a bit much to explain in a letter. The galleon isn't just extra spending money (that's what you were thinking, weren't you? Sorry, tough luck, kid). It's a sort of protective measure. It lets us know if anything's happened to you (stop rolling your eyes). Please, just do your mother a favor, and keep it with you. And try not to spend it._

_Dad_

_P.S.- If you don't like it as a galleon, you can change it by holding it and concentrating on what you want it to be. Just don't try anything strange like a rubber chicken, it's not that great._

_Fantastic, Dad,_ I thought, throwing the notebook and the pen down on my bed and shoving the coin in my pocket before running out of the room. _I'm late to Herbology so that I can get a safety precaution. Thank you very much._

I grabbed my bag and ran down the halls again, still thinking about his letter and the coin in my pocket. Or more like complaining in my head about them. _And, honestly, a_ rubber chicken I ran down the front steps and towards the greenhouses. As I got closer, I notice everyone's bags were outside Greenhouse 3. A pretty good hint as to where everyone was.

I shrugged off my bag and threw it next to everyone else's. I opened the door to the greenhouse and slid into the space next to Allie. She handed me a pair of earmuffs without say anything to me. I gave her a questioning look, but she didn't say anything.

"I see Miss Potter has decided to join us today," Professor Longbottom said, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly. "Forgot your book, I presume?"

I suddenly realized I had left my book in my bag, which was outside. I opened my mouth to say something, but he cut me off. "We won't be using our books today. We will be repotting Mandrakes, as I was saying before we were interrupted. Does anyone know what a Mandrake is?" A few hands shot into the air, mine and James' included. "Well, Miss Potter, I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself."

"A mandrake is a plant that can be used to make restoration potions. The cry of a mandrake is fatal, though." I couldn't help but add an extra comment in there. "Which is why we get to use these _lovely_ pink, fluffy earmuffs." The Hufflepuffs all tried to keep straight faces, but most of the Gryffindors didn't even try to hold back laughs.

"Correct," he said, definitely smiling now, "although the last part was unnecessary. These are just babies, so, at the most, it should only knock you out for a few hours. Unless of course you are a little more sensitive to emotions." Somehow I felt like that comment was directed at me. "Everyone put your earmuffs on securely and do not take them off until I signal."

Everyone put on their earmuffs. Professor Longbottom grabbed hold of a tufty plant in front of him and pulled. Instead of a bunch of roots, what looked like a screaming baby came with it. Most people cringed from the ugly baby, but I winced from the emotions. Jeez, that thing was upset. Alex cringed, screwing up his face.

Professor Longbottom put it in another pot and covered it with dirt. After a few seconds, it calmed down. He looked around all of us and gave us thumbs up. "Four to a tray."

We all moved around so that we could be with the people we actually wanted to be with. Alex was rubbing his forehead. "Ouch."

"It wasn't that bad," I said.

"For you," he retorted.

"Mr. Wood, Miss Potter, I believe you are both Extended Legilimens, correct?" Professor Longbottom asked, coming up behind Alex, who jumped. We nodded. "If your heads start to hurt or either one of you gets dizzy, I want you to leave. None of the 'let's see who can out last the other' nonsense. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," I said as Alex said, "Perfectly."

"Good. Everyone put your earmuffs on and wait for me to tell you when to begin," he called to the rest of the class.

&-&-&-&-&

"Head… hurts," Alex groaned as we made our way back to school.

"He told you if your head started hurting to leave," Allie said. "Why didn't you?"

"Because he's stupid," I said, rubbing my forehead.

"You didn't leave either," Alex said.

"I'm not the one complaining that my head hurts," I shot back.

"But it does. You just haven't said anything."

"So?"

"So why am I the only one that's stupid?"

"I never said you were the only one that was stupid."

"So-" He stopped and stared at me. "Did you just admit you're stupid?"

"No, James is," I said cheekily.

"Thanks, Lils," James said sarcastically.

"You both look like you're not feeling good," Allie said. "Maybe you should go to the hospital wing."

"Nah, it'll go away by History of Magic," I said easily. "And if it doesn't, we can just sleep through the class and we'll be fine by Charms."

"I'd sleep through the class even if I didn't have a headache," Alex said.

"So what else is new?" I muttered, rolling my eyes. Alex shot me a look, but he didn't say anything.

We went into the classroom and took our usual seats near the back. Most of the Ravenclaws were already there, but the rest of the Gryffindors were taking a little longer. By the time Binns flew through the chalkboard, we were all there. We started passing note like we usually did in Binns' class to keep us awake.

**Are you going to tell us now? –JP**

_Tell you what? –LP_

**What happened last night. –JP**

_Oh, that. –LP_

_Is that a yes or a no? –AW_

_That's an I have to figure it out first. -LP_

**_What do you mean? -AF_**

_It's confusing. -LP_

I saw Alex, who was the first one to read that line, groan. _Do you enjoy being difficult? -AW_

**Yes, she does. -JP**

_No, I don't. -LP_

**_You didn't answer the question. -AF_**

_I think I can predict the future by having dreams about the past. -LP_

**We know, you said that already. -JP**

_But it didn't make any sense. -AW_

_Meaning it's what? -LP_

**Confusing? -JP**

**_Weird? -AF_**

_Oh, I know!_ Not normal_. -AW_

_How about D. all of the above? -LP_

_C's the best answer. But I agree with B too. -AW_

_Do you think I could reach to hit him from here? -LP_

**_Probably. -AF_**

_Hey! My head's hurting bad enough as it is. You didn't need to hit it! -AW_

**I think you deserved it, mate. -JP**

_You're just on her side because she's your sister. -AW_

**No, I'm on her side because that looked painful. -JP**

&-&-&-&-&

"Do you want to practice?" James asked in the common room that night.

"I thought try-outs weren't for a week," Allie said, looking up from her homework and frowning.

"A week and two days," Alex corrected her. She rolled her eyes at me. Alex saw her anyway. "What? Two days can make a lot of difference."

"Yeah, the difference between sanity and insanity," Allie muttered.

"Your sanity or our sanity?" James asked.

"Mine."

"Okay, just making sure."

"Sure, we don't have anything else to do," Alex said. "Because that essay for Binns isn't due 'til Tuesday, right? So that gives us four days to do it."

"You probably need to take Saturday and Sunday out of those four days," I said.

"Why?"

"Because you'll both be out on the pitch all day on Saturday and Sunday. Unless Sirius gives people who plan on trying out for Quidditch homework, you won't do yours until Monday night."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," James said.

"Just don't expect me to help you," I said, shrugging easily.

"Alright," James grumbled. "We'll do the stupid essay. But you're coming with us tomorrow."

"Fine," I agreed, grinning.

&&&&&&&&

Fun, fun, fun. This is my favorite chapter I've ever written, for some odd reason. Well, not my _favorite_ favorite, but it's up there. I'm not sure why. **shrug **Whatever. I hope you guys like it as much as I do. Remember, short and sweet reviews are always better than no review at all!


	5. Quidditch TryOuts and Unexpected News

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.  
**Dark Wolf of Teros**- It will, but that's all I can tell you (yes, I do plan on going to 7th year… or at least 6th). Oh, I know. Aren't they a big bunch of babies? ; D  
**Freja**- The waiting is over! lol  
**Godric76**- I didn't have the heart to make Hedwig start falling apart. The back story… Maybe another day, eh? About the mandrakes… I kinda of compared it to cows (hang in there, in makes sense, I swear). You know that they can't be happy about being killed, right? But we kill them and eat them anyway without really thinking about it. Does that make sense?  
**Wolf's scream**- But of course.

**Chapter 5- Quidditch Try-Outs and Unexpected News**

"You're nervous," I teased as we made our way to the Quidditch Pitch week later, our brooms slung over our shoulders.

"No I'm not," James argued, avoiding my eyes.

Like he could lie to me. I grinned. "You are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Well-" He hesitated, trying to think up a good retort that would make me shut up. "You're nervous too!"

"Never said I wasn't," I responded easily, grinning. "Alex is too."

"I fly better under pressure," Alex said, trying to sound confident.

James snorted. "I'll believe it when I see it."

"You won't be seeing it for a while, we're last," I said.

"That's just cruel," James said. "Putting us all on the same day. And Slytherin's going first. _Slytherin_."

"Yes, they're all evil snakes that destroy the foundations of the wizarding world with all their pure-blood mania," I said dryly, rolling my eyes.

"Something tells me you don't believe that," Alex said.

"I'm one of those rare Gryffindors that knows there is such a thing as a good Slytherin," I said. "Though gits like Malfoy and Avery don't help," I added as we entered the Pitch. The Slytherins that were trying out were all in the air. The captain was yelling something we couldn't hear.

We went over and sat down in the Gryffindor sections with everyone else from Gryffindor that was trying out and the players already on the team. There were four players on the team. Hayley Penk and Marie Yumor were Chasers, Ben was Keeper, and Sirius was Beater.

Sirius came over to us when he saw us. "Good morning," he said cheerfully.

"'lo," James replied casually. "Are there this many people just to try out for three positions?"

"Yeah, I guess," Sirius said with a shrug. James paled. "Oh, _everyone_? No, of course not. At least three of them are first years, and about half of them are just here to watch. I think we have two people trying out for Beater, eight for Seeker, and four for Chaser."

"_Eight_!" James asked in a strangled voice.

"Most of them haven't been on a broom since first year," Sirius said, shrugging again. He clapped James on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it, James. I'll let you on the team if you're good enough."

"Wouldn't it be weird if all three of us make the team? As second years?" I asked.

"After having Quaffles thrown at you all summer, you should make it," Sirius said. "And Lils, stop biting your lip before you chew a bloody hole through it." Instead of standing my hair on end when I'm nervous like my brothers do (mine's a little too long to stand on end), I bite my bottom lip. I do it when I'm thinking too, but I usually don't realize it until someone comments on it. I've been told more times than I can count that it's a nasty habit. Which it might be, but who really cares?

"I'm not," I said indignantly.

"What, biting it or chewing a hole through it?"

"Chewing a hole through it."

"Hey, Sirius!" a fourth year called (I was pretty sure his name was Josh Fisher). "Did you see that?"

"I am not using any of the same plays as a Slytherin Keeper," Ben said before Sirius could say anything.

"I doubt you could do the original, not to mention that version," Sirius said. Ben shrugged and Sirius turned back to us.

"Was that a Starfish and Stick?" James asked. Starfish and Stick is a really complicated Quidditch move that involves the player dangling from his broom by one hand and one foot.

"More or less," Sirius said with a shrug.

"Don't you guys have reserves?" Alex asked. Sirius nodded. "So if we don't make the team, we can still make the reserves. Right?"

"Right now the only position we have a reserve in is Chaser, and that's Josh," Sirius said. "But between you and me-" Someone called his name again, getting his attention. "Hang on a sec!" He flashed us a quick grin. "Relax, guys. People make the team in second year all the time. I'm coming, just shut the bloody hell up!" He moved away from us to sit with Ben.

The three of us exchange looks. "Does he know how much that didn't help?" I asked.

"Probably not," James said.

"That's what I thought."

&-&-&-&-&-&

"Welcome to the Gryffindor portion of Quidditch try-outs," Sirius said grandly, making a few people laugh. "Sorry for the long wait. So much for that Gryffindor favoritism they're always talking about, eh?"

"Sirius, just cut the crap," Hayley snapped.

Sirius grinned. "Alright, Chasers are trying out first. Line up over there by Hayley. She's the grouchy one over there, in case you didn't know."

"Git," she muttered, but she was smiling slightly anyway.

"Good luck," James and Alex said at the same time. I smiled weakly and went over to where three other people were standing. Josh Fisher looked down at me and smirked. I made a face at him that was part glare, part smirk, part mocking smile.

"Beaters are next. Line up over here. Seekers go over by Ben. If you're not sure what you're going to try out for, get in the line that goes first. You can always go to the next group. If you aren't trying out, please _back off_. You can talk to your friends later. Thank you. Hayley, just get started with some basic passing drills."

"Alright," she said. "All of you in the air. And if you can't fly… Well, I feel really bad for you."

I could tell she was trying to help us relax a little, but it didn't work. I kicked off from the ground. I felt so much smaller than the other three. I knew one of them was a fifth year and the other one was a fourth year. And then there was Josh, who was pretty much guaranteed a position.

It didn't take me long to realize the only one I really had to worry about was Josh. He had some experience with the team, and he was definitely better than the other two. And he knew it. Which was a good thing and a bad thing. He knew he was good, so he wasn't nervous, but he was a little too confident.

It was pretty easy, I decided. Sirius _had_ known what he was doing when he threw those Quaffles at me all summer. My reflexes were so good that even Josh blinked at me in surprise. I could read a pass before the other person even knew where they were going to throw it (of course, that could come from being an E.L. too). Not that I planned on admitting to Sirius that he had helped me. Especially not with the way he was smirking the entire time.

The Beaters were after us. When we finished, the four Chasers went over by the potential Seekers or into the stands with their friends. "You looked good out there," James said.

I grinned. "Thanks."

"Here comes the competition," James muttered. I turned around to find Josh coming towards us.

"Hey, Josh," I said too cheerfully. He shot me a glare before pushing past us to get by Marie. "Good job out there," I said sarcastically to his back.

James laughed. "I think he knows you're better than he is and just doesn't want to talk to you."

"Right," I said, rolling my eyes.

The Seekers were last. James was practically pulled his hair out by the time Alex touched down. When Sirius called for the Seekers, James ran over. "Is he excited or so nervous he's about to wet his pants?" Alex asked when he got over to me.

"Both," I said, watching James.

"Show off," Alex said as James did a dive to let off steam.

"Mm-hmm," I agreed. "He's the only one in our family besides Dad that can do them without ending up on the ground." I turned to him and grinned. "Have fun being attacked by apples?"

"Why did he choose apples?" Alex asked. "I can understand not getting the bludgers out. But _apples_?"

I laughed. "Better than oranges."

"I s'pose, but still… _Apples_? I'm going to have nightmares now about the evil apples attacking me." I giggled. "What? I'm being serious! And it's seriously Sirius' fault."

I groaned. "Over-used pun alert. Twin brother has officially affected other people. Brill." Alex just laughed.

&-&-&-&-&-&

"Thanks for coming," Sirius called about half an hour later. "There were a lot of really good players-"

"That's the nice way of saying 'Most of you sucked'," James muttered.

"-but there are only seven positions on the team. The results will be posted on Monday. There will be a reserve Beater and a reserve Chaser. If you didn't make the team, remember that there's always next year. Thanks again for coming."

I saw Kevin run over to Sirius and tell him something before we started back to the castle. "I bet we made it," Alex said.

"I bet we at least made reserve," I said.

"Easy for you to say," James said. "I either made it or I didn't."

"This from Mr. I'm-Not-Nervous," I said, smirking.

"Hold up!" someone yelled. We turned around to find Sirius running towards us. "Mum wants to talk to us about something. Kevin said Dad's here too."

"Why would he be here?" James asked, confused.

"I dunno, but last time he was here it was kind of serious- Save the wise-cracks, you two. You know what I mean."

"And if you don't, you don't want to," I added as James opened his mouth to ask why Dad was here the last time.

"Yeah, well, anyway, they're both in Mum's office. Let's go."

"See you," James said to Alex.

We ran the rest of the way to the school. I tried to figure out what was so important that Dad had to be here. I suddenly realized something extremely important and stopped right in the middle of the Charms corridor.

"No bloody way."

"What?" James and Sirius both asked, stopping and turning around to face me.

I looked from one to the other. "I think I know what this is about."

"Is it bad?" James asked.

"Well… It kind of depends on how you take it."

"On how you take it?" Sirius asked. I nodded. "Long term or short term?"

"More long term."

"Bloody hell. You've got to be kidding me."

"Why do I feel like everyone knows something I don't?" James asked.

"Because we do. Are you sure?"

"No," I said, "but I have a pretty good idea."

Sirius groaned and looked at the ceiling. "Why did it have to be _my_ younger sister? Well, come on. Let's make sure the genius is right."

"How am I supposed to know if she's right if I don't even know what's going on?"

Sirius didn't answer as he turned the doorknob to Mum's office. Grace was already there, sitting in a chair. Dad and Mum were both standing behind the desk with big smiles on their faces. I shut the door behind me and sat on the floor in front of it, smiling slightly.

"How does she always know what's going on before everyone else?" James asked.

Dad laughed. "I'm not sure if she's always happy about knowing what's about to happen. And I'm not exactly sure how she knows, but I have a pretty good idea."

"It's a pain," I informed James, leaning against the door. "You can have it whenever you want it."

"What's so important and wonderful that you have to get all of us in here?" Grace asked.

"Well, we have some big, rather unexpected news," Mum said.

"Merlin, I hate it when she's right," Sirius muttered.

"And I still don't get it," James said as Grace let out an excited squeal.

"That's because you are extremely slow," Grace said.

"When it's not coming from one, it's coming from the other," James muttered, frowning.

"I'll explain later, James," I said, rolling my eyes. "Idiot."

"If I said you weren't going to be the youngest anymore, would you get it?" Sirius asked.

James' eyes widened. "Oooh."

I threw my hands into the air. "_Now_ he gets it."

"When is it due?" Grace asked excitedly.

"May," Mum said.

"How did you know that?" James demanded, turning to me.

"It's a gift," I said. "An annoying gift, but still a gift. That's why my head was hurting the other day during the feast. Only it was more like bits and pieces from different times all put together instead of actually saying it. Like I said, you want it, you can have."

"Do you know his- her- _the baby's_ name?" James asked.

I shrugged. "Can we help pick the name?" Grace asked.

Mum laughed. "Of course you can. Just not right now. We'll wait until closer to time to decide the name; we just wanted you to know. You may go back to the common room if you want. Lily." I stopped with my hand on the door and turned around. "We need to talk to you."

I groaned and moved out the way so that the other three could go by. "Adios," Sirius said, grinning cheekily. I stuck my tongue out at him as he closed the door.

"That was mature," Dad said, smiling slightly.

I pulled the coin out of my pocket and held it out for him to see. "I've got it now."

"I know you do," Dad said. "But you haven't been using the notebook."

I mouthed wordlessly for a few seconds. "How do you know?"

"He has the opposite notebook," Mum explained. "Everything you write will appear in his notebook."

"That's comforting," I said dryly. "Good thing I didn't plan on using it as a diary."

"Well, now that you've been warmed," Dad said, hiding a smile. "We know that you're a different kind of Seer, and we just-"

"I'm not going to have to start taking Divination, am I?" I interrupted.

"No, you're not," Mum assured me. "At least not right now. We just want to know when you have a dream so that maybe we can use the information. It might help you later on, and if you write them down, you can look back at it."

I turned to go, but I stopped and turned back to them. "It'll be a girl," I said matter-of-factly.

"Thank you," Dad said, smiling. "Anything else?"

"I could tell you," I said, grinning, "but that would ruin the surprise."

"You _do_ know the baby's name," James said accusingly as soon as I got out into the corridor.

"You were eavesdropping," I said, trying not to smile. "Come on, let's get back to the common room."

"You can be really annoying sometimes."

I grinned. "And your point?" James let out a frustrated groan and I laughed.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Don't look at me like that. There's reasoning behind it, I swear. Anyway, Quidditch results and the first match in the next chapter. The more reviews I get, the faster I'll update. So… Review, review, review!


	6. Results

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.

**Chapter 6- Results**

"_What?_" Allie, Jess and Amanda exclaimed at the same time.

I grinned. "My mum is going to have a baby."

"Aunt Ginny's going to have a baby," Amanda repeated, looking extremely shocked. I couldn't keep my grin from widening slightly at the look on her face. "I can't believe it."

"Well, she is," I said, falling back onto my bed.

"You knew before they told you," Allie said accusingly. I shrugged easily, Yes, I had known before they told me. Kind of. But I didn't want to say that in front of Amanda and Jess.

"How could you already know?" Jess asked, looking curious.

"I… Oh, just forget it," I said, not really wanting to try and explain. Especially when I wasn't even sure how I knew myself.

"That's her way of saying it's extremely complicated and she doesn't want to talk about it," Allie explained. "Do you know anything else?" she asked me.

"Yep," I said. "Lots of…" I remembered the third part of the vision/daydream/whatever-you-want-to-call-it thing. The part about Ravenclaw. "I know where she's going to get sorted," I said, sitting up.

"Really?" Amanda asked. "Does 'she' have a name?"

"Well, 'she' isn't born yet, so no," I said. "But she will, yeah. The poor kid can't go through life with the name 'she'."

We laughed. "No, I guess not," Amanda agreed.

There was a slight lull in the conversation before Jess spoke up. "How were try-outs?"

Allie and Amanda groaned. "You shouldn't have asked."

"You definitely shouldn't have asked."

&-&-&-&-&

"You have to go down eventually," Allie reminded me.

"I know," I said, running around the room to find and pick up and stuff into my bag the books I needed. "That doesn't mean I want to. I mean, I _want_ to, be I don't want to." I stopped and turned to her. "Did that make any sense?"

"In a weird way, yes. How do your books get so spread out?"

"I have no idea. Probably because I help all of you, and I always forget to put my books back into my bag when I finish." I shoved the last book into my bag and swung it over my shoulder. "Alright, I'm ready."

We got to the Great Hall to find a bunch of people crowded around the bulletin board right inside. "Go look," Allie said, giving me a push towards it.

"Nah, James and Alex probably already know," I said, ignoring the butterflies in my stomach. "I don't feel like shoving people out of the way just to-"

"I don't believe it!" someone yelled, sounding furious (and slightly familiar). "I got beat by a bloody second year! _How_ is that possible!"

"She was a good second year," someone else yelled back. "She's better than you at least!"

"He never was very good." I turned around to see Marie shaking her head. "Josh was okay, but he's nothing fantastic. Congratulations, by the way. You're way better than he is." She smiled at me before walking over to the Gryffindor table.

I stared after her in shock before during to Allie. "Did you hear what I just heard?"

"I _knew_ you could do it!" Allie squealed, hugging me. "Come on, let's see if the boys made it." She grabbed my arm and pulled me over to the table. James looked up when we sat down and grinned.

"That was brilliant," he said, laughing. "I was waiting for that one."

Alex laughed too. "We all made it! Not reserves either, the actual _team_."

"All three of us," I repeated, grinning.

"Did you hear who the Slytherin Seeker is?" James asked, frowning.

"Malfoy," I said. James and Alex nodded.

"How did _he_ get on the team?" Allie asked, making a face.

"It's called power, money, and family," I said, holding up three fingers. "And I hate to admit it, but he has _some_ skill. Not much, but a little."

"He definitely doesn't have the Potter skill," Allie teased.

"You should've seen him at try-outs," Alex said, pointing at James. "He's a show off." James just grinned innocently as the bell rang.

We headed towards the Transfiguration classroom. "I'll have to find someone to sit with," Allie said. "Since you three are going to be out there beating Slytherin."

"Hopefully Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw too," I said, laughing.

"Yeah, but don't you play Slytherin first?" Allie asked.

"We're supposed to," Alex said.

"But these things change," James said. "Especially when the Seeker's a git."

"So you can kick Slytherin butt first, then move on to just beating Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff," Allie said.

&-&-&-&-&-&

The next few weeks passed pretty quickly. Sirius was having Quidditch practice whenever he could get the Pitch, rain or shine. I think you could've blown up the Pitch and he _still_ would've had practice. Our first match was the weekend after Halloween.

As always, there was a Halloween feast. With gigantic jack-o-lanterns and live bats and tons of candy, what's not to love? Even the Slytherins seemed to be enjoying themselves. Which almost made me feel bad for them because they didn't know what was coming, but it was just too good an opportunity to pass up.

"I can't believe you guys are really going to do this," Allie said quietly. "Do you know how mean that is?"

"It isn't mean," James argued.

"Do you know how much trouble you're going to get in if you get caught?" she continued.

"Since when do you care so much about rule breaking?" I asked.

"And we are not going to get caught," Alex added. "We have skill."

"One prank isn't exactly what I would call skill," Allie said.

"That's what we have Lils for," James said, grinning.

"What, to keep you from getting caught or to get you out of trouble once you do get caught?"

"Both."

"You're horrible," Allie groaned, putting her head in her hands. "All of you. I'm going to laugh when you all get caught."

"Then you better not plan on laughing," I said, "because we're not going to get caught. And it's not that horrible. Come on, you know as well as we do that they've been trying to hex us for the past two weeks anyway."

Allie opened her mouth to respond, but closed it again. "That still doesn't mean you have to prank them."

"Yes it does," James, Alex, and I all said at once.

Allie rolled her eyes. "What if they all get mad and attack… Marie? Then you'll be stuck with Josh, who won't pass it to you. Then you'll be sorry you ever did it in the first place."

"For one, the Slytherins probably wouldn't attack Marie," I said. "They would either attack Ben or Sirius. And knowing both of them, they'd be out of the hospital wing in a couple of hours."

"Second, if Josh doesn't pass it to her, Sirius'll kick him off the team for 'not caring about the team,'" Alex said. "Or something like that."

"And last, we'd never be sorry about pranking the Slytherins," James finished.

"That's my little brother," Sirius said, sitting down next to us and giving James a pat on the back.

"Hey, Sirius?" I asked. "Why are you captain if Hayley is a seventh year?" It was something that had been bugging me since the beginning of the year. She was older than he was, shouldn't she be captain instead? (That and the fact I was pretty sure Hayley would've been a nicer captain.)

"Because she didn't want it," Sirius said, shrugging. "She said something about me being on the team longer and I deserved it more or something."

"And she couldn't handle all the responsibility and pressure," Ben added, sitting next to Sirius with Kevin on his other side. "Her words, not mine. I wish she could though. Then maybe we wouldn't have to be captained by this prat."

Sirius swatted at the back of Ben's head, but he ducked just in time. He grinned. "Not only do you have a prat for a brother, he's a violent prat."

Sirius seemed to be trying to decide whether or not to try and hit him again. He must have decided it wasn't worth it because he turned to us. "We were wondering if you wanted to help us get the Slytherins into, er- the losing spirit."

James and I looked at each other, silently agreeing that whatever Sirius had in mind was probably better than what we had come up with.

"How?" James asked.

"You know, the basics," Kevin said. "Different colored robes, different colored hair, a couple of signs in the common room… Stuff like that."

"The common room?" Alex asked. "As in the _Slytherin_ common room?" The three of them nodded. "Brilliant."

"We do it before every Slytherin/Gryffindor game," Ben said. "Have to keep traditions, you know."

"We're kind of pushing it by letting you four help, but for the sake of a continued tradition after we're gone, we'll risk it," Sirius said, grinning. "So, what d'you say? You in?"

"I am."

"Me too."

"Yep."

Allie just made a face. "I wasn't in it to begin with."

"Okay, it's settled then," Sirius said happily. "We'll talk to you three later about when and all that stuff." The three of them got up and moved back down by the other people in their year.

"Better than what you guys were going to do," Allie muttered.

"What happened to 'all pranks are a waste of time'?" James asked.

"I never said they weren't a waste of time," Allie retorted. "He just has better ideas than you do. "

"So does that mean you're going to help?"

"As if."

&-&-&-&-&-&

"You guys have to eat _something_," Allie chided the morning of the match.

"Nope."

"Not hungry."

"At least you two are talking," Allie said, rolling her eyes.

"Has she even said anything at all this morning?" James asked.

"Yeah, I asked her if she was nervous and she said I had no idea. Then I asked her about the prank last night and she just shrugged. She hasn't said anything else to me, and she wouldn't even talk to Jessica. I think she said about as much to Amanda as she said to me."

"That's it?"

"Yep."

"She must be nervous."

"Will you three stop talking about me like I'm not here?" I finally snapped. What can I say? I'm very moody when I'm nervous. Another one of my very nasty habits.

"She speaks!" Alex exclaimed, pretending you be amazed.

"Shut it."

"Is she always this moody when she's nervous?" Alex asked James.

"Yeah," James said, nodding. "Lils, you're biting your lip again."

"I don-"

"Team, locker rooms!" Sirius yelled.

"Good luck!" Allie said, grinning.

"I don't need luck," James said, but he was still a little pale.

Allie snorted. "Of course not, you're a Potter."

"Too right," James said.

"Come on, you big-headed git," I said, grabbing his arm and pulling him out of the Great Hall.

&&&&&&&&&&&&

This chapter is dumb and I realize it and I really wish I could reply to reviews but I can't and this chapter is mostly unedited so work with me and I'm sorry for taking so long to get the chapter out but I'm tired and really busy and this is possibly the longest run-on sentence I have ever typed. Whew. Well… Do what you know you need to do. AKA... REVIEW!


	7. The First Match

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.  
**godric76**- Well, it'll slow down in a little while. At least I think it does. But a lot of things are explained in this fic, so there's a lot of action. It'll slow down eventually.  
**Freja- **I'd like to think that this chapter is better than the last one. **shrug** Anyway, here it is. I'll let you be the judge.  
**Nick**- Wow, I've got readers from all over the world. **grins** It always amazes me that people want to sit down and wade their way through the first fic. Of course, you wading through the first fic is much more realistic than people on a different site wading through the first fic because your version is editted, but still...  
**Wolf's scream**- Meanandering. Ha. Random, you mean. Yup, here comes the match. : )

**Chapter 7- The First Match**

"All right, team," Sirius said, starting to pace in front of us. "We've got a tradition to keep. We know Slytherin likes to play dirty-"

"Sirius-" Marie started.

Sirius kept talking. I wasn't sure if he hadn't heard her, or if he was just ignoring her. "-but we can't sink to their level. We just have to-"

"Sirius-" Ben cut in.

"-show them we can win without cheating. Slytherin might-"

"Sirius-" Hayley tried.

"-not even be our toughest competitors this year. I hear Ravenclaw has a pretty good-"

"SIRIUS!" all three of them yelled at once.

"-team… What?"

"In case you care to notice," Hayley said, "the three of them," she motioned to me, James, and Alex, "are nervous enough as it is. They don't need you reminding them that Slytherins aren't the nicest people to play against."

"If you're going to give us a pep talk, make it a _pep_ talk," Marie said. "Not a let's-all-get-ready-to-meet-our-_doom_ talk."

"And, just to remind you, we need to be out there in about a minute," Ben said.

"Oh," Sirius said, making the three of them roll their eyes. "Alright, let's go then."

We mounted our brooms and flew out the trap door in the changing room. The field seemed so much… bigger with everyone in it. About three-fourths of the field was wearing red and gold, and one section to the far right was wearing green and silver. It made me feel slightly better. Most of the school was supporting us. But it also made me feel worse. If we lost, we would be letting down most of the school.

"Welcome to Gryffindor versus Slytherin," Kevin called. "The two teams have been preparing for this match since the beginning of the school year. Both Seekers are second years, so we'll have to see how much experience they have- no offense, James." James shot Kevin a look as we touched down in the middle of the field. "Captains Sirius Potter, sixth year Beater for Gryffindor, and Mark Winston, seventh year Chaser for Slytherin, shake hands."

"I want a clean game," Madame Hooch said sternly as Sirius and the Slytherin captain glared at each other. "No fouls, you hear me, Winston? Good, mount your brooms."

We all mounted our brooms and kicked off from the ground when she blew the whistle.

"Immediately taken by seventh year Hayley Penk of Gryffindor, pass off to Lily Potter, who has to be pretty good at handling the Quaffle after her having her brothers throw it at her all summer-"

"Hear, hear," I muttered, throwing it to Marie.

"Nice pass by Marie Yumor back to Penk. She shoots… She SCORES! 10-0 Gryffindor. Slytherin in possession…"

About an hour later, you could tell that everyone was starting to get tired. Except for James, mostly because all he had to do was fly in circles around the Pitch and look for the Snitch. The Bludgers were hitting people, or almost hitting people, more often and our passes weren't as good. Well, okay, we were doing all right…

"And another faultless reverse pass to Potter, passes off to Yumor, SHE SCORES! Merlin, Sirius, what have you been doing to them, boot camp! Ah, just don't ask, Muggle thi- Winston of Slytherin takes it, pass to Kelley, nice hit by Wood… Penk in possession, passes off to Potter- Ouch, that's gotta hurt-"

"Ya think, Jordan?" I muttered, trying to rub my elbow and chase after the Slytherin Chaser at the same time.

There was a loud groan as Slytherin scored. "90-110, Gryffindor still the lead. Potter takes it- helps to have a left-hander sometimes- passes to Penk- FOUL!" One of the Slytherin Beaters, instead of hitting the Bludger, had hit Hayley instead. Madame Hooch blew her whistle and Marie took the penalty shot.

"Ha, ha, take that you slimy snak- Right, sorry, Professor, unbiased- 90-120, Slytherin back in po- Hey, is that the Snitch?"

I looked over my shoulder in time to see James dive, with Malfoy right behind. Of course, Malfoy wasn't stuck on a Cleansweep so his broom was supposed to be faster. But James was still in the lead, and pulling farther ahead. I couldn't see the Snitch they were going after, but they couldn't _both_ pull off fake looks of concentration like that.

James reached out his hand and closed it around something. I saw him grin as he pulled to a stop with his fist raised in the air. The stands exploded.

"GRYFFINDOR WINS! Potter catches the Snitch! 250-90," Kevin yelled happily. I flew to the ground and ran over to James, reaching him about the same time as the rest of the team.

"See?" he said to me. "I told you I didn't need luck."

I rolled my eyes, but grinned. "You're such a prat."

"But a talented prat," James replied, grinning.

&-&-&-&-&

Victory parties are better when you were a part of winning. Or maybe it's because we weren't first years anymore. I'm not sure, but either way, it was a lot more fun.

Sirius, Ben, and Kevin had gotten food from the kitchens Hogsmeade. "It'll be you in two years," Sirius had told me and James. "Someone has to get the supplies for all the parties."

Then there was the _wonderful_ tradition. After every match, the whole Quidditch team stayed up, going over the plays and what went wrong and everything. After everyone else had gone to bed, they- or we, I guess- were still talking. Usually it went on at least an hour after everyone else went to bed.

"Alright, you guys can have your fun staying up until the crack of dawn," Hayley finally said. "I've got homework to do tomorrow, so I'm going to bed."

"Goodnight," everyone called.

Marie yawned. "I should probably go to bed too."

"Why are girls always the first ones to leave?" Ben asked.

"Because we tend to not be as Quidditch obsessed as the boys," Marie said. "I bet Lily can stay down here as long as you."

"Wouldn't put it past her," Sirius said.

"G'night," Marie said as she went up the girls' dorms.

A little while later, Sirius made the three of us second years go to bed. "I bet your roommates are staying up late just to ask you about it. Go on, get up there." James and I stuck our tongues out at him, and he just stuck his tongue out back at us with a laugh. "Get going, you two."

When I got to my dorm, everyone was still up. Just like Sirius had predicted. Not that I would admit that he was right. "So?" Allie asked excitedly. "How was it?"

I thought for a few seconds. "Fun, but stressful. I'm just glad we don't have another match until after the break."

"The alumni match is next week, isn't it?" Amanda asked, thinking.

"Does it matter?" Jess asked. "We can't go anyway."

_Legally_, I added to myself with a grin.

&-&-&-&-&-&

"_What is it?" Hermione asked, watching Harry pace back and forth._

"_Yeah, what's up?" Ron asked._

_Harry stopped pacing and turned to the other two. "Do you two remember how last June?"_

"_Of course we do," Ron said, but Harry ignored him._

"_You know how they were after that prophecy?"_

_Ron and Hermione looked at each other. "Yes…"_

"_And how it was about me and Voldemort?"_

"_Harry, what are you going on about?" Hermione asked._

_He took a deep breath. "I know what it says."_

_The room went silent. Nobody moved. "And?" Ron prompted._

"_Seems Trelawney isn't as worthless as we thought," Harry said dryly._

"Trelawney _made that prophecy?" Hermione asked in surprise at the same time Ron asked, "What does it say?" Hermione shot him a glare._

"_Er… Do you want the exact words or the general idea?" Harry asked nervously._

"_General idea," Ron said. Hermione shot him another glare. "What? He offered."_

"_Ron Weasley, are an insensitive git," Hermione said. _

_Ron opened his mouth, but Harry cleared his throat. Ron muttered something that sounded like "She started it," before shutting his mouth. _

_Harry sighed and started pacing again. He stopped again in front of the other two. "It said I'm the only one that can defeat Voldemort."_

"_The…_ only _one?" Ron asked nervously. Harry nodded and Ron gulped._

&-&-&-&-&-&

"Somebody's quiet this morning," James said.

"I'm just… thinking, that's all," I said.

"Yeah, and the last time you said that, you ended up predicting that our little sister was going to be born," he retorted dryly. "You ought to just admit it."

"Well, if that was another prediction, Allie, you better plan on keeping up your end of the deal," I said.

Allie gave me a confused look. "Oh, _that_ deal! I forgot about that. Yeah, sure, you keep up your end; I'll keep up mine. Or you mess up first and I'll keep mine."

"What deal?" James asked.

"We have an agreement," I said.

"If one of us spills our secret, the other one has to tell her secret," Allie said.

"What kind of secret?" Alex asked.

"The kind that you two'd probably find out eventually anyways," Allie said with a shrug. "At least mine is. Dunno about Lily's."

"It is," I said with a nod. The bell rang and everyone got up and started towards his or her classes. Ours was Defense. "What time is everyone supposed to be here?" I asked, mainly to change the subject.

"Six," Alex said. "Then the match is at 7:30. We're still going, right?"

"If Sirius will let us borrow his cloak, yeah," James said. "But if he doesn't, then we're either going to have to be really careful or not go at all. He'll probably let us use it though, you've seen how he is about us following in his footsteps."

&-&-&-&-&

It ended up Sirius was perfectly happy to let us borrow his cloak. He could go legally, so he didn't mind "helping those with a greater need," as he put it. So that night, at six o'clock, the four of us sat at the magically expanded Gryffindor table, waiting for the players to get there while the cloak sat _innocently_ in James' pocket.

Each house had two teams, and each team had the usual seven players and two reserves. Alex's mum and dad and our dad were on the same team (Mum didn't want to play, with the baby coming and all). Fred and George were on the Dad's team too, but Uncle Ron was on the other team. All the teams had their house name and another name added to it, like the Gryffindor Lions or something like that. The first match was one of the Ravenclaw team against Dad's team (which was the team called the Gryffindor Phoenixes, in case you were wondering).

Professor McGongall had decided it would be good for the teams to come and eat dinner with us so that we could get to know people that had already graduated from Hogwarts. As soon as the teams walked in, Fred and George spotted us and came over.

"'Lo," Fred said cheerfully.

"Hey," James said. "How're the new shops coming?"

George grinned. "If they're not careful, we'll put Zonko's out of business." It was kind of funny how they had gone international a few years after they opened, but it's taken them almost twenty years to get a shop in Hogsmeade.

"Not to be boasting or anything," I said, grinning.

"Are you four coming to the match?" Fred asked. We all nodded. "Good to know you're using the maps. Well, we'll see you later." They went over and sat with Ben and Sirius.

"I like your uncles," Allie said.

"Most people do," I said with a shrug.

Finally, about an hour later, after we had talked to just about everyone on the Gryffindor team, Professor McGongall announced that the players needed to leave and that everyone who was going to Hogsmeade should go into the Entrance Hall. Sirius winked at us as he walked by. "Have fun."

"Oh, we will," James said, grinning.

When Professor McGongall dismissed the rest of us, James, Allie, Alex, and I slipped into an empty classroom to wait until everyone else has gone by. James was in charge of the cloak and I was in charge of the map.

"Alright, it's clear," I said after about ten minutes. "They're a cert on the fourth floor, but they shouldn't be too much trouble." We snuck out of the classroom and down the hallway.

"Where's the entrance again?" Allie asked.

"It's on the third floor," James said. "In a witch's hump. It's true, I swear," he added when Allie gave him an odd look. "You'll see it when we get there." A few corridors later, we stopped next to a statue of a humpbacked, one-eyed witch. James pulled out his wand and tapped the hump, muttering, "Dissendium."

Just as he was about to open it, somebody called, "What are you four doing?"

_Busted._

&&&&&&&&&&

Again, don't get too excited with about the Quidditch thing. It disappears after the next chapter. I seriously think I put it in there just as an excuse to write about Fred and George. **shrug** Anyway… Yeah, tiny bit of a cliff, but it's really not too bad (you should see the one I just wrote; it is the definition of cliffhanger). You guys know what to do, I'm sure. In case you forgot….

**REVIEW!**


	8. Useless Tunnels

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.  
**Nick**- Not too long. Less than a week. How's that for quick:)  
**Wolf's scream**- Glad you liked it.

**Chapter 8- Useless Tunnels**

"Oh, hey, Paul," Alex said innocently. James and Allie looked at him in surprise, since they didn't know who the Hufflepuff prefect coming towards us was, but I knew that it was Alex's brother. I just… didn't know if that was a good thing or not. Something about the way Alex was standing told me that it wasn't. Well… at least it wasn't a Slytherin, right?

"What are you doing here?" the prefect demanded again.

"Um… walking?" I offered.

"Actually, we were walking," Alex said. "But now we're standing still. See?"

"My little brother and the Potter twins," Alex's brother said. "In the middle of a seemingly empty corridor. Do you really expect me to think that you aren't up to something?"

"It was worth a try," James said with a shrug.

"Now, for the last time, what are you four up to?"

"Ask no questions, we tell no lies," Alex said cheekily. I bit my bottom lip to keep from laughing.

Alex's brother glared at him. "Alright then, I won't ask. I'll just take you all back to your common room, how's that?"

"Sounds great," I said brightly. The other three gave me questioning looks. Even Alex's brother looked surprised.

"Fine. Follow me, then."

I gave them a look that said 'Just act innocent and I'll explain later.' They must've gotten the idea, because they didn't ask anything as Alex's brother led us back to the Fat Lady. Alex's brother, despite the fact that he had technically found us somewhere we weren't supposed to be, didn't hesitate to start teasing Alex. By the time we got the portrait hole, it looked like Alex was more than a little relieved to be able to get away from him. "Quaffle." The portrait hole swung open. Alex's brother stood there until the four of us were inside and the portrait hole had closed again.

"Okay, so why did we just do that?" James asked.

I grinned. "Because I know a way out that'll lead us to the fourth floor."

"If we can find the way out again," Allie reminded me.

"Since when have you two been searching the corridors without us?" James asked, raising an eyebrow.

Allie rolled her eyes. "Don't ask."

"We found it by accident though," I said. "Maybe it only works at certain times or something, so I dunno if it's still there. But it's better than a detention."

"Everything's better than detention," Allie said.

James and Alex let out snorts of laughter. "Like you would know." Allie stuck her tongue out at them.

"The entrance was over by the boys' stairs, wasn't it?" I asked Allie.

"'Think so," she said, shrugging. "Can't remember exactly though. That's your job."

"Gee, thanks," I said sarcastically. "It's over by your staircase. I think. There should be little marks on the wall or something."

"Little marks on the walls?" Alex asked. I nodded. "Okay." He went over to the wall by the boys' staircase and started looking. It only took him about thirty seconds to find them. He took a quick look around the common room, but nobody was looking at him. He pulled out his wand and tapped the marks, and part of the wall disappeared. He turned back to us and grinned.

"I think he found it," Allie said. We all ran over and went through the hole before it closed behind us.

"Lumos," James and I muttered at the same time. The tips of our wands lit up.

"That's helpful," Alex said, sounding impressed.

"How do you get through?" James asked me and Allie, looking between us.

"Um… Lean against the wall?" Allie said uncertainly.

"So we just lean against the wall at random places until we fall through?" Alex asked. "Oh, _that_ makes sense."

"Well, unless Mr. Wonderful-Extended-Legilimens can find it, yes," I said.

"Okay," Alex said. I could tell he was grinning. "I'll find it. You three just stand back and watch a professional."

"Cocky, aren't you?" Allie asked, but Alex ignored her.

"Yeah, I would say so," I said.

"I don't see you finding any way out of here," Alex said. He stuck his hand out and, instead of touching the wall his hand went right through. "Ha, I found it!" He turned around and stuck his tongue out at me.

"Oh, yeah, he's cocky," I said. Alex bowed before sliding through the wall and disappearing. "James, I think you're rubbing off on his."

"No, he's always been like that," James said. "Just not around you." He went over to the wall and slipped through.

I looked at Allie. "After you," I said, mock bowing. Allie went over and disappeared like James had. I sighed, thinking it was too much like the entrance to Platform 9 ¾ for comfort (which I always hated, by the way; running at walls usually doesn't sound like the brightest idea in the world and I figure if James is allowed to hate floo powder, I can hate running at walls). I sighed and walked over to the wall and slid through.

"Have a little trouble there, Lils?" James teased as I put my wand out.

"Your friends in Knockturn Alley must really be missing you," I retorted. Allie giggled and James glared at me. I grinned. "To the third floor then?"

"Make sure it's clear," Alex said. "Paul's probably walking up and down that stupid corridor to figure out what we were doing."

"Yep, he's still there," I said, looking at the map.

"We'll just have to use the cloak then," James said.

"Wait until we get down there though," I said. "Nobody else is between here and the third floor besides your brother." We walked through the corridors innocently. It wasn't curfew yet, so we were still okay as far as that went. When we got to the third floor corridor, we all hid around the corner while I checked the map. "He's _still_ there."

"Hey, I've got an idea," Alex said suddenly.

"Uh-oh."

"That's never good."

"Oh, shut up," he snapped. "All we have to do is distract him at the other end of the corridor. Then that'll get his attention, and the other three can go through. Then we wouldn't have to use the cloak when we're climbing in."

"Two questions," I said, holding up two fingers. "One, how're we going to distract him?"

Alex shrugged. "However you want. Blow something up, I dunno. Just distract him long enough for the rest of us to get into the witch or whatever it is you have to do."

"Two, who's going to do it?"

"You."

"Me! Why me?"

"Because you were the first one to say anything about. Besides, you run faster than the rest of us."

James held the cloak out to me. "And you have the least detentions. Besides Allie. What's one more going to hurt?"

"I hate you," I said, but I took the cloak anyway, and handed him the map. "Hey, do either one of you have a firework or a dungbomb?" James pulled a Filibuster Wet-start Firework out of his pocket and held it out. "Thank you."

"I'm so glad I have friends like you guys," Allie said.

"Yes, we're such wonderful people," I said sarcastically.

"I was going to say because you don't make me get in trouble with you, but whatever works," Allie said, smiling slightly.

"See you on the other side," Alex said, grinning. I glared at him before throwing the cloak over me.

I turned and walked down the corridor until I saw Alex's brother. He was looking at the witch's hump like he was trying to figure out what we had done to it. I snuck past him and around the corner to the next corner. I pulled my wand out of my pocket, touched it to the firework, and threw the firework as hard as I could away from me. It's not the brightest idea to let off a firework in the middle of a corridor in a stone castle. It echoes like crazy. But it gets people's attention.

I waited until Alex's brother had run past me to go back to the other corridor. I saw Allie slide in just as I turned the corner. I skidded to a stop next to the witch and hopped in, shutting the hump behind me. There were a couple of steps down before you got to the real tunnel. The other three were standing at the bottom of the stairs.

"Is she in or did it shut on its own?" I heard James ask.

"She's in," Alex said.

I pulled the cloak off my head and relit my wand. "Let's go before the stupid match ends."

"How long is this thing anyway?" Allie asked.

"Dunno," James said. "It must not be too long though, or Sirius wouldn't've said anything."

"He wouldn't use it either," I added. James nodded.

It took us about thirty minutes to get to the other end of the tunnel. I think it would usually only take about fifteen minutes, but with Alex and James fooling around, it took longer. There were steps at that end too. James went up first.

"Ow!" he exclaimed after about ten steps.

"Sirius said there's a trap door, so just push up," I said.

"Nothing's… happening," James said, pushing up. Alex stepped up beside him and helped him push. Nothing happened.

"That stinks," Allie said.

"Maybe there's a box on top of it," I said.

"And how are we going to the box off of it?" Alex asked.

"Um…" I bit my bottom lip for a second, thinking. "_Well_, I have an idea," I smirked, "but you'd have to stand back. And I'm not sure the trap door would work anymore. And I'm pretty sure the owner would hear it."

"So much for the SPs," Alex said, making a face.

"The match might even be over by now anyway," I added.

"It's not worth it," James said. He went down the stairs and jumped over the last three, landing in front of me. "But remind me to hurt Sirius when he gets back for giving us a passage that doesn't even work."

"Sirius!" He looked at us.

"What?"

"It wouldn't open," James said.

Sirius gave him a confused look for a second. "Oh. Yeah. Sorry 'bout that. The owner does that sometimes. It was a pretty boring match anyway."

"We killed them," Kevin said, grinning.

"What was the score?" Alex asked.

"230- 30," Ben said.

"Yeah, we ran into your brother on the way back," Sirius said, smirking. "You guys have those maps for a reason. You're supposed to use them."

"Didn't work very well against you either," I retorted.

"But I'm _your_ brother," Sirius reminded me. "Not his brother. There's a difference. I know most of the secret passages in this school. He doesn't."

"Good thing too," Alex said.

Sirius laughed. "Oh, that reminds me. Practice tomorrow night, don't forget."

"He's a tyrant," Ben muttered. James, Alex, Allie, and I laughed as Sirius swatted at his head.

"What does Alex's brother have anything to do with practice?" Allie asked after they had left.

"Our next match's against Hufflepuff," I said. "I think."

"Yeah, it is," James said. "After the break."

"Then why are you having practice now?" Allie asked, confused.

"Because, like Ben said, our brother is a tyrant," James said.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Whee, that was a fun chapter. Boring for the most part, but whatever. The main purpose of that chapter was to introduce Lily to the tunnel. It's important to her later, so I wrote that to get that out of the way for later use. There really wasn't any reason other than that. Don't forget to review! Oh, and another thing. If you would be so kind, could you please take the time to go over and read my one-shot? It's called _A Promise Made is a Promise Kept_. It has nothing to do with this story, but you could read it anyway. ;)

Chapter 9 (**The Dangers of **Boredom) Preview:

_--"That's because I'm the smart one," I said, grinning._

_--"Why don't we just all try to become Animagi?"_

_--"It's all the wind's fault."_

"_Of course it is."_

"_Just like it's all my fault I have a prophecy about me, right?"_

_--"Well… I'm a diakrino."_

_--"You're a Potter. That makes you special."_


	9. The Dangers of Boredom

**Summary**- Going into second year. More pranks, spilled secrets, and major problems. So is the life of Lily Potter and her friends as she continues her adventure at Hogwarts. This year could be a little more exciting than they had expected. Be sure to keep a light on. Sequel to The Next Generation.  
**Disclaimer**- I am not J. K. Rowling, and I never will be. I am merely a poor 15-year-old that writes fanfictions in her free time. Although I do claim all characters/settings you have never heard of before. And I own the plot.

**Chapter 9- The Dangers of Boredom**

The next month or two passed pretty quickly. They usually do right before Christmas. Especially when your brother is an obsessed Quidditch captain, you're planning a prank for the Yule Ball (which we somehow convinced Allie to help us with; still trying to figure out how that happened), and you're excited about going home for Christmas. Well, for us it wasn't really _home_, it was our grandparents' house, but it was some place other than Hogwarts. Not that Hogwarts was a bad place to spend Christmas, it just wasn't… Never mind.

Every year, all our aunts and uncles and cousins that were home for Christmas would go over to my grandparents' house. It was always a bit crowded- okay, a lot crowded- but we always had fun.

James had decided that since the 'SPs' had been quiet all year, we needed to prank the Yule Ball. We had fun coming up with the stupidest ideas, but we finally decided to just stick with hiccupping punch (Alex's idea) and exploding cookies (James' idea). All we had to do for that was ask Fred and George to owl us some, and then get it into the Great Hall so that people would use it during the ball. The first part was easy. The second was easier said than done.

It helps to have a brother with an invisibility cloak. Especially when it's that brother that taught you everything you know about pranks, minus one or two things your uncles taught you. And our brother was the master of pranks in our generation. And then there was another thing that helped- Sirius was a prefect.

So while all the other prefects were decorating and setting up tables and all that other stuff prefects have to do to get ready for a ball, we snuck in and just replaced the punch and added a few cookies. Nothing too big, but somebody would hear about it later. Not us, of course, but you know.

Later that night, the four of us were sitting at a table in the common room. It was kind of quiet. All the third years (or the girls at least) felt cheated because they couldn't go, the first years were more worried about their holidays, and the second years were somewhere in the middle.

"I'm bored," James complained about an hour after all the older students had gone down to the Great Hall.

"Really, James?" Allie asked sarcastically, looking up. She'd been writing something on her parchment for most of the time we'd been up there. "That's only the- what? Third?- time you've said that."

"Fifth," I said distractedly, not looking up from the book in my lap. "I think."

"What're you writing anyway?" James asked Allie.

"Nothing," she said quickly, covering it so that James couldn't see it.

"Girls have too many secrets," he grumbled. Alex let out a snort of laughter, but didn't say anything.

"Deal with it," Allie said.

I grinned. "What she said."

"What are _you_ working on?" James asked me.

"I'm not _working_ on anything," I said. "I'm reading."

"That chapter for Transfiguration?" I nodded. "Psh, that's working. You've got two weeks to read it."

"One, I don't have anything better to do, and two, do you really think we're going to get anything done at the Burrow?"

"Er… no, not really."

"My point exactly. And three, my grades've been slipping anyways."

"That's from keeping to many secrets." I shook my head, but didn't say anything. "Oh, come on, Lils, your grades aren't slipping that much. You've still got better grades than me."

"That's because I'm the smart one," I said, grinning.

"Yeah, just keep telling yourself that, Lils." He didn't say anything for a few minutes. "Anyone want to play exploding snap?"

"I was waiting for that," I said without looking up.

"I'll play," Alex said.

They only played two rounds before both of them got bored. Then James moved on to bothering Allie about what she was writing. Or drawing, really.

"It's just a picture," she said, holding it behind her back so that he couldn't get it.

"Then why don't you want us to see it?" James asked, trying to reach around her.

"Because it's a horrible drawing and you'll make fun of it."

"No I won't."

"Yes you will."

"Nu-_uh_."

"That sounded mature," I said sarcastically.

James settled for sticking his tongue out at me. "I promise I won't laugh."

"I still don't want you to see it."

"Please?"

"Nope."

"Oh, come on!"

"No!"

"Urg." He flopped down on the floor on his back. "I'm bored."

"Seven," I said, grinning, "and still counting." Allie just rolled her eyes and kicked James' side.

"Ow! What was that for!"

"For being a git."

"You said git," he said, propping himself up on his elbows and looking at her.

"That just means I've been over here too long," Allie said.

"Right." He flopped back down. "Why don't we just all try to become Animagi?" I grinned. It was sort of an inside joke James and I had for whenever one of us was bored.

"Become what?" Allie asked, staring at him.

"Animagi. People that can change into animals."

"And why would we want to do that?"

"Because then after we figured out how to do it, we could come up with nicknames for each other."

Alex stared at James for a second before turning to me. "Has he hit his head lately?"

"Yeah, he fell off a broom the other day, remember?" I said.

"No, that was him," James argued, pointing in Alex's general direction.

"You just totally buggered up (AN- tehehe, I love that word! Ahem, right…) that dive of yours," I said, smirking.

"I didn't totally bugger it up, I just… fell. It was windy!"

"Right," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes. "It's all the wind's fault."

"Of course it is."

"Just like it's all my fault I have a prophecy about me, right?"

"Of cour- What!" James sat straight up and looked at me. "What did you say?"

"I said just like it's all my fault I… Opps." All three of them were staring at me. I smiled sheepishly. "That wasn't what I meant to say."

"No, but that's what you said," Allie replied. "And if that's true, then you have a lot of explaining to do."

"Um…" I didn't mean to tell them. It just came out. I had meant to say something about… Heck, I don't know what I meant to say, but that definitely wasn't it. I mean, yeah, I would've told them about it- eventually-, but not that soon and not like that.

When you have to tell someone something, do you ever try to predict their reaction when you tell them? And usually they're pretty close to the right thing? Yeah, I did it too. And I was pretty close to right on their reactions. James was in shock, Alex didn't know what to think, and Allie was trying to pretend to be calm even though she knew what that might mean.

"You have a prophecy about you?" James asked. "That's what you haven't been telling us!"

"Yeah, kind of," I said. Might as well go ahead and get it over with, because they definitely weren't just going to leave it now.

"How long have you known?"

"Oh. Um… about a year actually."

"A year!" James exclaimed, making people turn and stare. "You've known a year?" he demanded quieter so that no one else would hear.

"Well, more like ten months actually," I said.

"Close enough," Alex said.

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

"So you've known for ten months and you didn't tell us?" James asked.

"That's what I said, isn't it?" I asked. "And no, before you ask, I'm not telling you what it says."

"Must be bad then," James muttered. I rolled my eyes. Really, it was bad enough, but James was really almost making it worse. Sure, you were supposed to take it seriously, but you didn't have to over-analyze it. Which was exactly what James was doing.

"Okay, Allie, your turn," I said.

"Oh, well, it's, um…" She trailed off uncertainly. "It's not as big as yours."

"Don't care," I replied. "It's your turn, a deal's a deal."

"Is it that you can draw?" Alex asked.

"Er, no, Alex," Allie said. "It's a little bigger than that."

He shrugged. "Just guessing."

"Well?" I asked.

"Well… I'm a diakrino."

"A what?" James asked.

My eyes widened. "No way."

She smiled weakly and nodded. "Yes way."

"What the hell's a di-y-akring-o?" James asked.

"Diakrino. It's the technical word for an elemental," I said quickly. "Like Extended Legilimens can be called sensors or whatever… Allie, that's- that's-"

"Totally unexpected?" she offered.

I nodded. "Yeah. But kind of cool." I frowned slightly. "Is that really why you moved here?"

"Um… yeah, actually," she admitted. "Only my sister really did get a job over here, and your ministry really is kind of short-handed, but I'm the main reason. Kudos for me."

"So you can control the weather?" James asked.

"No, James," she said, rolling her eyes. "I cannot control the weather. Well, not really. Sort of. I can't suddenly make it sunny or anything."

"But you can make it windy," Alex said. "Or rainy. Right?"

She nodded. "That's why I' m good at Potions too, supposedly. It's elemental magic."

"So all dikringos are good at Potions?" James asked.

"Not dikringo," she said, smacking her forehead. "Di-a-krin-o. It's not that hard."

James turned to Alex. "I feel left out."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because all of you have some special power and I don't."

Alex laughed. "It's not always a good thing, mate."

"Nope," Allie agreed. "I've nearly set something on fire like ten times."

"Trust me, James, you should feel special," I said. "You're lucky."

"A best mate that's an E.L., a twin with a prophecy- which she won't tell us about-, and Allie's a diakrino- I said it right!-, but I'm completely normal. Well, not completely, but closer than you three."

"You're a Potter," I said, closing my textbook and dropping it on his stomach.

"Yeah, but that's- Oof! That hurt, Lils!"

"And see, now you have a bruise," Alex said, smirking.

"One question about the prophecy though," James said, picking up the book and pretending to throw it at me just to see if I'd duck.

"What?" I asked.

He gave me a serious look. "Did it say you were going to…" He trailed off, not really needing to finish that.

"No," I said. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth either. And he could tell too, but he didn't push it. Not with Allie and Alex around. But I had a feeling that it was going to be a long Christmas break for at least one of us. A very, very long break.

----

diakrino (diakrinô) means, literally, 'elemental' in Greek. Just in case you were wondering in. (I was going to use Latin, but it's like elemantel or something and that seemed too boring)

The prank's a little stupid, but work with me here. Sorry for the long wait. If you review, I promise to post faster, actually edit, and reply to reviews. Don't you love bribing:-D


	10. Important Notice to Important Readers

Alright, let's try this again. Completely retry this.

I can't do this. This editting a fic that I hate. So, instead, I decided to completely rewrite it. I'm not sure how many of you are just on story alert for this story and how many of you have me on author alert, but just so you that those of you that have me on story alert and not author alert know, I'm not going to posting any new chapter on this story. Not ever.

The reason? I'm rewriting the entire series. Which for you just means the first year (for me it means two and a half years, but that's beside the point right now). So, instead of sitting here wondering when, if ever, I'm going to update this, wander over to _My Father's Daughter_. It's essentially _The Next Generation_, only revamped, rewritten, and renamed.

Same characters? Pretty much, with minor changes. Same plot? Essentially, but not completely. Do you need to read it even though you already read TNG? Yes, most definitely. It's not just minor alerations that, when you read it, will make you wonder what changes I actually made. No. I completely, and I mean completely, rewrote the first chapter. Same chapters might not change as much as others, but most of them will have changed so much you might not recognize them. And yes, I sound like the over dramatic author here, but just take my word for it. If you liked _The Next Generation_ and _The New Child of Prophecy_, you'll like this even better. I think. I hope. But obviously I don't know any of you well enough to tell for sure, so just read it and find out for yourself.

Thanks for your support,  
Lindsey


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